


Jamais Vu

by Ruenis



Series: Fin [2]
Category: Aldnoah.Zero (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Flower People, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-18
Updated: 2016-08-18
Packaged: 2018-08-09 12:33:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7802023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruenis/pseuds/Ruenis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They get a second chance, but not in a way either of them expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Jamais Vu

**Author's Note:**

> alternate summery; that one reincarnation AU except they were reborn as flowers and only partially remember some things.  
> [ The feeling of something familiar when it shouldn't be.](https://dewpriism.tumblr.com/post/148995003109/did-you-kno-jamais-vu-is-the-phenomenon-of)

Holding his hand out before him, Inaho gazes at the back of his palm and his arm, allowing it to catch the sunlight. His skin, slightly darkened by the sun, is covered in small, vein-like scars that are a few shades darker than his natural skin tone: they _are_ his veins, visible under the thin layer that makes up his skin, and he recalls that the veins regulate –

_Veins form a system throughout the body to regulate blood and oxygen._

– water and minerals, and others regulate sugar.

_They appear blue or green depending on skin type and colour._

Blinking at the invasive thoughts, Inaho's dark eyes narrow in slight confusion; the thoughts are not his own, and he cannot recall a time when his veins had ever been blue, nor another use they might serve. He disregards them and throws an arm over his eyes, falling back to sleep on top of the warm grass.

His veins regulate water and minerals and sugar. Just like a normal **flores'** would.

* * *

 

Being outside is relaxing. Natural. Normal.

Inaho has found that going outside has become part of his routine. The natural world feels far better than being inside where he is starved of sunlight and fresh air – _carbon dioxide alone cannot be classified as air_ – and taking walks in the outdoors, further and further away from his home each day, has allowed him to discover a beautiful flower he otherwise would not have seen.

Beside a vast lake, that may as well be an ocean to the tiny Inaho, lives a singular rose. The rose is an off-shade of white, and has blue speckles dotting its many petals. Its stem is devoid of thorns, and it only has a few leaves. Not only is it odd looking, but it is entirely out of place.

And in spite of it being so blatantly _otherworldly_ , Inaho has taken to gazing at it for hours on end, the rose's presence familiar, comforting. He has come to see it every day since discovering it, feeling the need to care for it, the need to protect it. He _does_ care for it, in his own way: he speaks to it with as much affection as his usually usually flat tone can muster, gives it water as needed, makes sure it receives an adequate amount of sunlight, keeps it safe from insects that might harm it..

Caring for it has also become part of his routine.

 _One day,_ he thinks, gazing at the peculiar looking rose, _it will be like me._

_Alive and breathing._

* * *

 

When Inaho catches a glimpse of himself in the lake's wavering reflection, he is momentarily confused.

White blossoms dot his hair, petals touched with a hint of orange, and leaves intertwine with fine strands of dark brown. His left eye is an off-shade, mismatching the dark brown of his right. Instead, the left appears a muddy crimson, diluted and _off_. His skin is darker, tanner, thanks to spending countless hours lying in the sunlight, napping beside the rose he has come to treasure.

For a moment, he wonders why he looks like this.

_I'm not supposed to look like this. I'm not a plant. I'm not a plant. I'm not.. –_

Inaho reminds himself that he has _always_ looked this way, since he woke up some years ago. His appearance has not changed _at all_ in the last couple of years.

 _I'm not a plant,_ the invasive thought whispers again, confused, scared, _Who are you?_

Who are you?

The question causes Inaho to pause, taken off guard. “I'm me,” he says after a moment, an uneasy feeling in his stomach, “I'm me.”

* * *

 

“Is this what you wanted to show me?”

Inaho nods, crouching down to allow his fingertips to graze the rose's delicate petals. “I'm going to call them Slaine,” he says softly, a small smile pulling on his lips.

Yuki kneels down beside him, her own features softening considerably at the gentle, _happy_ look on her brother's features. It is rare to see such an expression on his face. “So this is where you've been, huh?” she asks quietly, earning a small nod. She watches as Inaho cups a handful of the lake's water and slowly allows it to drip over the speckled rose, careful not to break it with any sudden force. “Are you caring for them until they wake up?”

“Yes,” Inaho murmurs, the water slipping though his fingertips like tiny droplets of rain. “They need positive stimulation to promote healthy growth,” he says, lifting his head to look at her, then. His dark eyes linger on her lighter ones, “Can we move them?” His voice is quiet, still, laced with an underlying hope that she will say yes.

 _Closer to home,_ Yuki finishes in her head. “Sure, Nao.” She nods a few times, reaching out to smooth one of the rose's petals. It is jagged, the edge looking as if it had been torn off. Blinking in surprise at the sight, she lifts her head to find that Inaho has yet to notice. “I'll help you,” she offers, watching the brunet light up, “Let's move them today.”

“I'll get a flower pot,” Inaho says, letting the rest of the water fall around the rose's perimeter. He straightens himself and walks off, leaving Yuki to look after Slaine by herself.

Yuki frowns as she lets her finger trace the outer petals of the rose, feeling and seeing more jagged, uneven petals that look like they were _deliberately_ torn off, and not by an insect.

If Inaho knew someone was hurting the rose he has so meticulously cared for..

_He would be devastated.._

Shaking her head somewhat, Yuki starts to dig out the dirt from the rose's perimeter, careful not to sever or damage any of its roots, _If they're closer to home, Nao can watch them and keep them safe.._

_And so can I._

* * *

 

Inaho's friends are unaware of his fascination with the rose until they come to visit him a few weeks later, finished with their excursion to a waterfall at the edge of their home.

“Good morning, Inaho!” three familiar voices chime, causing Inaho to look up in slight surprise.

He had not heard them approach, too focused on the rose that rests just before his fingertips. “Good morning,” he returns softly, mismatching eyes flickering between the trio.

_Sunflower, delphinium, and buttercups.._

His gaze settles on buttercups. “What happened to your hair?”

Nina blinks at the question, and then smiles clumsily, cheeks turning a light, embarrassed shade of pink. “We.. had an accident, when we were out,” she says slowly, pulling at a handful of hair to reveal more blue-purple splotches in between blond strands, “A blueberry fell on me.” Some of the buttercups in her hair are even dyed in the juice, standing out from the normally sunny yellow petals that are laced throughout her hair.

“It's hard to get out when it's dried,” Inko says, frowning somewhat, "Have you _seen_ blueberries?”

Inaho shakes his head 'no'.

“They're the size of your head, probably,” Calm offers, “Maybe a bit bigger.” He crouches down beside the brunet, gently putting a hand at his shoulder so that he can keep himself steady, “You have more orange blossoms than usual. Your face and arms are..”

Inaho looks down at his arm, noting that there are indeed a few petals here and there. “Your sunflowers are more yellow. Like the sun,” he murmurs.

Calm smiles at that, “We had fun. You should've come.”

Inko and Nina also crouch down beside them, though their gazes are on the rose.

“It's pretty,” Nina comments.

Inaho immediately lights up at that, happy that they acknowledged the rose. “Their name is Slaine,” he says, “I'm going to care for them when they wake up.”

“.. ' _Slaine_ '?” Inko repeats, the name a bit clumsy on her tongue, “That sounds foreign.” She reaches out and gently pets one of the petals, gazing at the odd, bluish specks that dot the off-white. A peculiar flower with a peculiar name. _Maybe this person will match,_ she supposes, meaning it in only the kindest of ways. Yuki says that before Inaho woke up, he too was an odd looking blossom.

“Ah, we brought you and Yuki back a blueberry,” Nina says quickly, not wanting to forget, “We'll bring it over tomorrow.” If she does not say it now, she is not certain she will remember to tell him later.

Inaho nods somewhat at that, happy that they remembered to bring him back something. “Thank you,” he murmurs, “Does it taste good?”

“It tastes pretty good, yeah,” Calm answers, his gaze flickering to the rose. “Is this what you've been doing the whole time we've been gone?”

Inaho nods again, and the smile that pulls at his lips is hard to ignore.

 _Caring for them makes him happy.._ Inko realises, her own features softening as she looks at the gentle look on the brunet's face, _That's good. He'll have someone else around when we aren't.._ “When they wake up, can we meet them?” she asks.

“Yes,” Inaho says instantly, allowing himself to finally smile, the question and idea obviously making him _elated._ “I'll invite you over when they wake up,” he says, gaze flickering upward so that he can meet her violet eyes; they nearly match the delphiniums in her hair, though the petals tangled in it are varying shades of purple, from lavender to plum. “You can visit whenever you want,” he murmurs, lowering his voice again, “ _Positive stimulation is good for growth.._ ”

* * *

 

“I wonder what they're going to look like..” Nina muses aloud, gently sprinkling the dirt around the rose's stem with fertilizer. She had brought some with her today, dark soil mixed with some leaves and decayed berries. As Inaho had said yesterday, positive stimulation – in this case, a 'gift' of higher quality soil – is indeed good for healthy growth. She has not seen another flores wake up in awhile, and intends on taking care of Slaine as best she can, especially if it means they will wake quicker.

It made Inaho happy, to see that she was thoughtful enough to bring something for Slaine. He is sitting beside her on the grass, a small, silver watering can beside him. He uses it now instead of his hands to properly water the rose, and fills it with water from a pond. “.. blond,” he says after a moment, his gaze lingering on the rose for just a few moments before he looks up at Nina.

She looks surprised by the comment, having not expected her friend to easily come up with an answer. “You think they'll be blond? Like Calm and I?” she asks curiously, pulling on her own hair; it still has a few purple blotches, but most of it has been washed out, now, allowing more of her dirty blonde hair to peek through.

Inaho pauses at that, pursing his lips. Nina's hair is more brownish, and Calm's hair is brighter, but those are not the colours that come to mind when he thinks of what Slaine might look like. “More.. white..” he says slowly, “Similar to.. yellowed roses, lighter than yours and Calm's..”

Humming softly at that, Nina tries to picture it as she looks back to the rose. It's petals _are_ a bit off-white, so it is entirely possible that Slaine may have a similar hair colour upon waking up.. “Then, would their eyes be blue? Like these little specks?”

Blue eyes..

 _That wouldn't be so bad,_ Inaho thinks, _Blue eyes are interesting._ “They could be,” he says quietly, smiling somewhat, “Blue is a nice colour.”

“Do you like it more than orange?”

“We'll have to wait and see.”

* * *

 

Blinking in surprise upon seeing that some of the rose's outer petals are frayed, Inaho finds himself momentarily stunned by the potentially horrible discovery.

“What's wrong, Nao?”

Inaho raises his head slightly, fingertips pulling on a petal just enough to show the problem.

“Oh..” Yuki breathes in, and then smiles rather suddenly, smile sheepish, clumsy, “I'm sorry, Nao. I think I might have given them sugar water instead of regular water, a few days ago..”

Inaho frowns at that, but nods, understanding. A simple enough mistake. Until they had gotten the watering can from Calm, they had been using cups.

And seeing as Yuki drinks sugar water..

“It's okay,” he says quietly, shaking his head, “They'll get better.”

The rose's petals have already started to get better, it seems; some petals look more frayed than others, the healing process at differing rates, for now.

Yuki nods and breathes a sigh of relief. “I'm sorry, Nao. I'll be more careful from now on,” she promises, gently ruffling the brunet's hair. Her fingers linger on the numerous petals hidden within it, and her smile turns bittersweet when she sees that they have increased in number once again. “You really do like caring for them..”

“I'm going to make sure Slaine gets the love and care they deserve,” Inaho murmurs, gently patting at the fertilized dirt with his hands, trying to flatten it, “I want them to be happy.”

 _Make sure Slaine gets the happy ending he deserves this time,_ the invasive thought whispers, sounding almost desperate, pleading, _Don't let him go._

Inaho tenses somewhat, though not quite enough to alert his sister to his sudden surprise.

_Please keep him safe._

“I'll keep Slaine safe,” Inaho whispers, gaze lingering on the rose for just a moment more. _I promise._

* * *

 

Stirring at the sounds that invade his ears, Inaho slowly finds himself waking up from his nap. His vision is blurry, and he still feels drowsy, but the sounds are too close to ignore.

Hiccups.. coughs.. soft snif–..

Inaho sits up almost immediately after that, looking around for the source. His gaze sits upon an unfamiliar mess of white – or, at least, something similar to white. The mess is more like cream and yellowed white roses.

“What are these..?”

More hiccups follow, more quiet, stifled sobs.

“It hurts..”

The voice is unfamiliar, too, but the way it sounds, confused, hurt, makes Inaho's heart ache.

_It shouldn't sound like that._

“Why won't they disappear..?”

Standing up slowly, Inaho wavers for a moment, the sudden rush of air making him dizzy. He stands still for a moment before walking over to the mess of white, freezing when he realises the mess is _someone._ Someone like him: not quite a person, but not quite a plant, either.

This _someone_ is source of the voice and sounds. They are sitting on the grass, sobbing quietly, panicked, confused.

Inaho's stomach lurches when he sees familiar off-white shapes scattered on the grass, and his vision finally adjusts.

The specked flower petals.

_No.. no.. no.. don't let him.. –_

“Stop,” Inaho says, immediately dropping to his knees. He grabs their hands, holding them firmly, “You're hurting yourself.”

The _someone_ raises their head just enough to reveal blue-green eyes under bangs of near-white.

Inaho breathes out shakily, “Slaine..?”

 _They –_ **he** _– woke up._

Slaine's eyes are rimmed red, puffy, glossy with tears. “What am I..?” he asks, so visibly, painfully confused, “I died..” He remembers it, barely, the feeling of being suspended in the air, all alone in a dark place..

 _Tell him he's okay,_ the invasive voice says, desperate, _He's okay._

Inaho gazes at the blond for a moment, heart seizing up. Slaine looks _familiar_. He has never seen him, never imagined what he might look like beyond hair and eye colour, but somehow, in some way, he _recognises_ him. And it hurts. “You..” he pauses, trying to gather his thoughts, “You're okay.” He loosens his grip somewhat on Slaine's hands, holding them gentler, more comforting than detached, now. His thumbs rub against Slaine's hand, smoothing the petals that dot the back of his hand. They are still mostly intact, albeit a bit torn.

“It hurts,” Slaine says, gaze flickering to the scattered petals. His pale arms are covered in scratches, flesh coloured bruises, and red patches of skin from the damage he had done to them. Thankfully, it seems he did not tear very many petals out, Inaho having woken up in time before Slaine truly, really hurt himself. “Why does it hurt?” he asks, voice still soft, still shaky, still laced with confusion.

“The petals, they're..” Inaho pauses again, worry and guilt welling up in his chest. “You aren't..–” Another pause, and his gaze slips to Slaine's arm. “You aren't supposed to.. tear them off..” he finally says, heart aching, hurting, “Please don't tear them off anymore.”

_Calm him down._

“You're okay,” he says again, “You.. your name is Slaine.”

Slaine blinks at that, a few tears slipping from his eyes. Shock. “I'm.. Slaine..?”

Inaho nods slightly, gazing at the other. He continues rubbing Slaine's hands, _Please don't cry._ “And.. you're.. you're like me,” he continues, slowly, trying to lessen the informational blows, “A.. flores. We're flores.”

Not quite human, but not quite a plant. A mix of the two.

“Flores..?” Slaine echoes, frowning at the term; it confuses him again, and more tears start to well up in his eyes. He shakes his head somewhat, “No, I..”

 _Calm him down. Calm him down,_ the voice begs, desperate again. It does not want to see him break down.

“A rose,” Inaho says, the words slipping from his lips before he can help it, “You were a rose.” He studies Slaine's face, watching as a hint of understanding flickers in his teal eyes. _He remembers being a rose,_ he realises, breathing a soft sigh of shaky relief. “I.. took care of you,” he continues, quiet, “I gave you water, and.. Yuki-nee helped.. and Inko, Calm, and Nina helped, too. We took care of you.”

Slaine nods somewhat at that, able to remember that too. He remembers their voices, what they had said to him, their kind words and gentle touches.. “You're..” he smiles suddenly, sheepish, relieved. He pulls a hand away, raising it just high enough to touch Inaho's hair, fingers brushing against a small cluster of white-orange petals, “You're.. Inaho?”

“I'm Inaho,” the brunet answers, returning the smile with a gentle one of his own. _He remembers my name._

 _Please make him happy,_ the voice says, sounding softer now, almost sad, _Please keep him safe._

Inaho stays still as Slaine touches him, curiosity on Slaine's face. “.. can I continue to take care of you?”

“You.. want to take care of me, still?” Slaine asks, a mix of surprise and relief replacing the curiosity. He remembers what it had felt like to be alone, remembers faintly that sometimes it had been painful.

He does not want to go back to that.

Inaho is warm and nice and _familiar and safe._

“Have.. have we met, before..?” Slaine asks softly, pulling his hand away. He rests it on Inaho's arm, where a few petals dot his skin, “You're..”

_Familiar._

Inaho blinks at the question, not sure how to respond. The answer _should_ be no, but something in him wants to say yes. So, he settles with a quiet, “Maybe.”

Despite being indecisive, the response seems to satisfy Slaine's need for an answer, because he smiles again, relieved.

 _You feel the same way,_ Slaine realises, finally able to relax. “I'll stay here,” he says, earning another smile from the brunet.

“You will?”

“Mm,” Slaine nods. _It's safe, here. It's nice.._

Inaho's smile softens, and his eyes fix to Slaine's. _I promise I'll take care of him for you,_ he tells the quiet voice.

In the back of his head, it hums quietly, finally content and happy.

_Thank you._

 

 

 

“You're.. Slaine?” Inko asks, gazing curiously at the blond that fidgets before them.

“You're beautiful!” Nina says, causing Slaine to hide his face in his hands, embarrassed. She grins at the reaction, practically beaming. The blond looks almost exactly as she and Inaho had discussed a few weeks ago, with near white hair and eyes a few shades off from the blue specks dotting the off-white petals. They are more of a blue-green, similar to the pools of viridian that dot the path to the waterfall they had visited. And he looks _healthy._

Calm gazes at the other blond, eyes lingering on Slaine's arms. Catching Inaho's gaze, he blinks upon seeing the brunet shake his head slightly, and realises he does not want him to comment on it. Instead, he smiles slightly and says, “If you're up for it, maybe you can join us on a trip.”

“Ah, right!” Inko quickly agrees, nodding, “We'd love to take you out. How would you like to see a giant waterfall?”

Slaine lowers his hands slightly, the offer appealing. “Is.. is Inaho going to come, too..?” he asks, gaze flickering upward.

“Yes,” Inaho says immediately, nodding. _If that's what makes you happy,_ he thinks, smiling somewhat.

“Then it's settled,” Calm hums, “Next week, then?”

“The week after,” Inaho says before their new friend can agree. _Slaine needs more time to adjust._

Yuki walks into the room, then, holding a small, green cup made of a leaf. “Here, Slaine,” she says, carefully holding it out for him, “It's sugar water.”

Slaine takes it slowly and gazes at it for a few seconds, somewhat confused. “Sugar water..?” he echoes, bringing the cup to his lips.

Inaho watches silently. Slaine has yet to drink anything since waking up, so hopefully this will help repair some of the cells he damaged in his arms. He smiles slightly when Slaine starts to drink it, taking small sips, and allows himself to finally sit down beside the other.

Yuki pulls up a chair behind the group, gaze lingering on the blond. She had not failed to notice the bruises along his arms, all the little red splotches on his skin.. It was easy to guess that he had panicked upon waking up, but it seems that Inaho calmed him down before he had done anything horrible to himself.

“Do you like it, Slaine?” Inko asks curiously, watching as he slowly drinks the water.

Slaine nods slightly, gently placing the leaf cup on the wooden floor before him. “It.. tastes good,” he murmurs, not quite sure _how_ it actually tastes, but he knows it does not taste bad. It tastes better than rain water, anyhow. He gazes at the three of them for a moment, teal eyes lingering on their faces and hair. “Why do.. we look different..?” he asks, realising that unlike himself, Inaho, and Yuki, they do not have white petals.

“We.. aren't the same race,” Inaho says, causing Slaine to look up at him, confused again. “Yuki-nee and I are orange blossoms..” he says softly, smiling somewhat, “You're a rose.. Inko is a delphinium, Nina is a buttercup, and Calm is a sunflower.”

Slaine blinks at that and looks back to the trio: Inko is purple, varying shades of it, and even her eyes are a light shade of pinkish-violet. Nina is yellow but her eyes are green and her hair is not as yellow as the petals in her hair. And Calm is as yellow as the sun, but he has tiny brown dots on his skin, along with the petals.

“Did the sun touch you?” he asks, and Inaho immediately gets what he is getting at.

“Yes,” Inaho says quickly, only shaking his head when Calm gives him a confused look. He himself is not quite sure what the markings on Calm's skin are, but supposes they are attributed to him being a sunflower in some way.

The answer seems to make Slaine happy, anyhow, and he smiles at the other blond. “I see.”

“We should probably go..” Inko says, gaze on a small window carved into the side of the stump that makes up Yuki's home, “It's getting late..”

Slaine looks disappointed. “You're leaving?”

This time, Inko is quick to catch on. “Yes, but Inaho's going to stay here with you,” she points out, causing the blond to look over at said brunet, “You get to have him the whole night, and tomorrow, and every day after that.”

Slaine lights up at that, the simple fact seeming to ease his fears.

 _He doesn't want to be alone,_ Inaho realises, gazing back at the blond. “I'm always going to be here,” he says quietly, and the blond's smile turns to that of relief. He returns it with a gentle one of his own, and Slaine relaxes further.

The trio get up, approaching Slaine slowly.

“Goodnight, Slaine,” Inko says, bowing somewhat, “It was very nice to meet you.”

Nina and Calm hold out their hands, to which Slaine blinks at in confusion.

“You're supposed to shake them,” Calm offers, smiling cheerily, “It's how we say goodbye.”

Slaine gently takes their hands, watching as they both shake his own hand gently.

“Goodnight, Slaine!” Nina hums, “We'll see you soon.”

“Night,” Calm offers, pulling his hand away.

“We'll see you later, Inaho, Yuki.”

“See you,” Inaho says softly.

“You're welcome here anytime.”

When they leave, Slaine shifts his attention back to the brunet, “What are we to do now?”

 

 

“I want to sleep with you.”

Inaho stares at the blond, both surprised and a bit put-off by the question. He has finally _just_ finished making Slaine's bed, having taken a few petals from storage and piled them upon each other until they made a suitable futon. “In my bed?” he asks, wanting confirmation just in case Slaine had meant the room.

“Yes,” Slaine nods, and from the look on his face, he finds absolutely nothing wrong with the request.

Neither does Inaho, even though he knows he _should,_ but the request is innocent enough, even if a bit frustrating. “That's fine,” he says after a moment, earning a happy smile from the blond. He wonders if Slaine's request stems from him not wanting to be lonely, or the odd familiarity they feel for one another.

Perhaps it is even a bit of both.

 

When Inaho is on the verge of falling asleep, he hears Slaine shift, and blinks upon the blond turning to look at him.

“I remembered something,” Slaine says quietly, able to make out Inaho's face in the darkness, thanks to the moonlight coming in through the window. He pauses, grip tightening somewhat on their blanket, which is another, longer, smoother flower petal. “We were different,” he finally says, and though Inaho is unable to make out Slaine's face, he can hear the confusion in his tone, “The world was.. bigger. Everything was bigger. And I was alone.” He pauses again, and breathes in, exhaling quietly. “But I had you. And that made me happy. Even when..–” His breath catches, and he exhales again, this time shakily, weak, “Even when I died, I was happy, because you had been there with me until the very end. I was happy.”

 _'I died'._ The thought echoes in Inaho's head. This is the second time he has said that, and Inaho is not quite sure what he means by it.

“I feel safe, here,” Slaine whispers, voice slipping into a gentle, relieved tone, “It's.. it's safe here. Safer than it was before. And I.. have you, again. So I'm happy, now, too..” He smiles a bit, reaching his hand out, fingertips grazing Inaho's cheek, “I wanted to say 'thank you'. For being here for me.”

Inaho stays immobile, allowing the blond to touch him. He is still not quite sure what he did, but Slaine is obviously happy that he did it. “.. you're.. you're welcome,” he says after a second. “I'm always going to be here,” he says again, meaning it just as much as the first time.

“You promise?”

“I promise,” Inaho answers.

Slaine sniffles, then, vision obscured by relieved tears. “Thank you, Inaho,” he murmurs, pulling his hand away to wipe his eyes, “It'll.. it'll be better, this time. Because we're safe..”

Inaho only hums quietly at that, still unsure of what Slaine is talking about; whatever it is, he seems to be okay with it, now, and he is happy.. “Goodnight, Slaine,” he says.

“Goodnight, Inaho.”

 

 

When Inaho finally manages to fall asleep, he dreams of a memory.

A memory that is not quite his own, but belongs to him nonetheless.

And in it, he and Slaine are talking quietly in a room made of metal and steel, talking quietly about –

“ _I love you.”_

“ _E-eh..?”_

The first time they had said, 'I love you'. The memory does not quite belong to him, but Inaho remembers the very first time he had finally said those three words; in that metal room with steel bars and no windows, he had told the person most dear to him how he had felt.

“ _.. I.. love you, too..”_

And they had returned his feelings.

**Author's Note:**

> flower meanings;  
> white rose; new beginnings – blue rose; miracles  
> orange blossom; eternal love, innocence  
> delphinium; big hearted  
> sunflower; child at heart  
> buttercup; cheerful, charming


End file.
